US Upstream M&A Opens Strong in 2022

Merger of equals contributes to $14 billion in 1Q22 M&A before Russia-Ukraine war and associated oil and gas price volatility halts activity

AUSTIN, Texas , April 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Enverus, the leading energy data analytics and SaaS technology company, is releasing its summary of 1Q22 M&A activity. As the M&A market marched into the new year, $14 billion in deals were announced during the first quarter of 2022. However, the last significant transaction occurred in early March before a spike in commodity prices temporarily halted activity.

"All the factors that kept upstream deals resilient in 2021 carried over into the new year," said Andrew Dittmar, director at Enverus. "That included a need for inventory by public companies, ready private sellers and favorable pricing. However, the volatility in energy prices caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine stalled nearly all deals in March."

Overall, deals were most active in the Rockies region (more than 50% of total 1Q22 value) driven particularly by buyer interest in North Dakota's Williston Basin and Colorado's DJ Basin. The always consistent Permian Basin captured a bit under 30% of deal value and one big deal in the Marcellus drove the roughly 20% of value allocated to the Eastern region.

One of the deal types less susceptible to commodity pricing risk is the so-called corporate mergers of equals. The combination of Oasis Petroleum and Whiting Petroleum in the Bakken in early March was a return to this type of transaction and the first public-public company merger since August 2021.

"There should still be plenty of upstream deals to be had," Dittmar said. "We just need some stability in commodity pricing and an acquisition or two to benchmark deals to reignite what should be an active market."

Members of the media can contact Jon Haubert to request a copy of the full report or to schedule an interview with one of Enverus' expert analysts.

Enverus is the leading energy SaaS company delivering highly-technical insights and predictive/prescriptive analytics that empower customers to make decisions that increase profit. Enverus' innovative technologies drive production and investment strategies, enable best practices for energy and commodity trading and risk management, and reduce costs through automated processes across critical business functions. Enverus is a strategic partner to more than 6,000 customers in 50 countries. Learn more at Enverus.com.

SOURCE Enverus